Half to william iieston



(No Model.).

H. M. CAMPBELL, RAILWAY RAIL JOINT.

No. 558,036, Patented Apr 14, 1896.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HUGH M. CAMPBELL, OF HOMESTEAD, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE HALF TOl/VILLIAM IIESTON, OF SAME PLACE.

RAI LWAY-RAI L JOIN'T.

SPECIFIOATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 558,036, dated April14, 1896. A

l Application filed November 27, 1895. Serial No. 570,261. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern: I

Be it known that I, HUGH M. CAMPBELL, a citizen of the United States,residing at Homestead, in the county of Allegheny and State ofPennsylvania, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement inRailway-Rail Joints, of which the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription.

The object of this invention is to provide a device for connecting themeeting ends of railway-rails without the use of bolts or fishplates,and which, while affording security against the lateral and verticaldisplacement of the rails, will also admit of the inevitable creeping ofthe rails due to changes of temperature.

The invention consists of what, by analogy, may be called a chair,constructed to receive the feet or bases and webs of the meet ing endsof two rails and provided with an automatic tension-wedge, substantiallyas I will proceed now more particularly to set forth and finally claim.

In the accompanying drawings, illustrating my invention in the twofigures, of which like parts are similarly designated, Figure 1 is aperspective view, and Fig. 2 is a horizontal section taken just belowthe head of the rails.

The letters a and 12 indicate the meeting ends of two railway-rails ofany approved construction.

0 is what I have hereinbefore denominated the chair, and this chair maybe a casting made with a horizontal pocket (I and a communicatingvertical slot 6, by means of which the feet and bases and the webs ofthe adja cent ends of rails may be connected with and arranged in saidchair. As shown in Fig. 2, one wall, f, of the slot 6 is made straightand parallel with the webs of the rails, so as to fit snugly againstsuch webs,while the other wall, g, of said slot 6 has its face next tothe webs longitudinally oblique thereto or made on an incline, in orderto receive a wedge h, which may be introduced between said wall and thewebs of the rail in the direction of its length and of the length of therails and be forced in between the webs of the rails and the said wallg, in order to make as tight a made in all rail-joints for the creepingof the rails incident to variations in temperature, and in order thatthis may be accomplished in my rail-joint I provide the chair with abracket '1 which, as shown, may be bolted to the chair and which has aright-angled head j, in which is arranged a set-screw is. In the exampleherein shown this set-screw has its end 71; reduced, and it is providedwith a washer or shoulder Upon the reduced end of the set-screw isarranged a coiled spring Z, whose other end may be let into the head ofthe wedge 72-, as indicated by dotted lines, Fig. 2, so that the saidspring may be sustained in position. By means of the set screw thespring may be given a tension sufficient to hold the wedge in place withadegree of pressure commensurate with the attainment of a firm joint ofthe rails in the chair and yet allow the movement of the rails undervariations of temperature. The spring and. setscrew hold the wedge toplace, and when it is desired to dismember the joint in order to removea rail the set-screw may be run out suf ficiently to release thepressure of the spring upon the wedge and admit of the Wedge beingreleased, so that the defective rail may be withdrawn lengthwise withoutremoving the chair from the sleeper or tie, it being understood that thechair is spiked to the sleeper or tie. I

I am aware that boltless rail-joints are old, and that wedges have beenused in connection with such boltless rail-joints, and that a set-screwhas been employed to hold the wedge in place; but I believe that suchconstruction produces a joint of such inflexibility and rigidity as tofail to meet the requirements of practical service, and I believe alsothat the interposition of the spring between the setscrew and the wedgeobviates this defect and results in the thoroughly practical boltlessrail-joint.

I have described myinvention as applied to railway-rail joints; but itis obvious that with slight alterations the joint is applicable to themeeting ends of other objects than railway-rails 5 and I have alsodescribed and shown the use of the coiled spring; but it is obvious,again, that other forms of springs may be substituted, and I wish to beunderstood as including within my claim of invention these alterationsand modifications.

What I claim is- 1. A railway-rail joint, comprising a chair slotted orgrooved to receive and engage the feet or bases and Webs of the meetingends of adjacent rails, and having at least one of the walls of itsgroove or slot made longitudinally oblique or inclined to the webs ofthe rails, a wedge interposed longitudinally between the said chair andthe webs of the rails and next to said oblique or inclined wall, aset-screw arranged in alinement with the said wedge, a rigid support forsuch set-screw apart from the wedge, and a spring interposed betweensaid set-screw and the wedge, substantially as. and for the purposedescribed.

, ficiently to permit the creeping of the rails,

substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set :my hand this. 25th day ofNovember, A. D. y 1895.

HUGH M. CAMPBELL.

Witnesses: J. O. SWEARINGEN, W. L. MoOoNEeLY.

